About Judge Renée

Early Voting Starts: October 22 - November 2Election Day: November 6th, 2018

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About Judge Renée Yanta

After teaching in public school for 9 years, practicing law for 24 years, and serving as judge for almost 7 years, Judge Renée Yanta presides over the 150th District Court. She is also the founder and presiding judge of a cutting-edge therapeutic court for teen girls in the Foster Care System, called PEARLS Court.

Judge Yanta hears the whole range of civil cases, from multi-million dollar complex oil and gas disputes to car wreck cases. Judge Yanta is especially qualified to serve as judge for civil cases due to her vast experience as a civil litigator and legal scholar. Prior to taking the bench, Judge Yanta was routinely in trial, also handling the law questions of a case all the way to the Texas Supreme Court and Federal Courts of Appeals. In private practice, she was a perennial Super Lawyer, named one of the Top 100 Women Lawyers in Texas in 2006, is Board Certified in Civil Appellate Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, taught law to practicing lawyers and law students, and continues to serve on the State Bar Pattern Jury Charge Committee for now over ten years. She has written 100+ legal articles and is one of the authors of an essential law book every judge and lawyer uses when trying a civil jury case.

A large portion of Judge Yanta’s docket is family law cases — divorce, custody, child support, and child protection. For these often-difficult matters, Judge Yanta relies not only on her mastery of law, but also her tender heart for protecting children and rebuilding family. Her foundational principal in family law cases is to create stability, healing and collaboration.

Following her heart for protecting children, in 2015, Judge Yanta created a court especially for teen girls in foster care. To address these girls’s ever challenges, Judge Yanta innovated a therapeutic court that provides trauma-informed care, life - skill training, and profound mentoring and unconditional but tough love. Over 30 girls have been served by this special, community / court partnership, with amazing outcomes! PEARLS Court Girls have met every goal for the program, and in June 2017 celebrated the high school graduation of its first two Seniors.

Besides a full docket and thriving PEARLS Court, Judge Yanta stays focused on community service. She has been president / chair of numerous organizations, including the University of Incarnate Word Development Board, the St. Mary’s Law Alumni Association, the San Antonio Bar Foundation and the Bexar County Women’s Bar. She currently serves on the Bexar County Juvenile Board and the University Health Foundation Board. She is also a hands-on volunteer, helping at SA THREADS (a boutique for foster children), serving meals at SAMM Ministries, and having started a teenage pregnancy prevention program in the Harlandale ISD.